Lost in Time and Space
by TARDISBlueBox
Summary: The Doctor and Clara are stranded on an alien planet, the TARDIS crashed. They discover another crashed ship, and its mysterious Captain. Can they escape the planet, with nature working against them? Can they trust Captain Floyd? Short story.
1. Chapter 1

The TARDIS console hummed quietly as the Doctor manipulated the controls, twisting dials and flipping switches. Clara stood nearby, watching the Doctor as he worked.

"So, where are we going this time?" Clara asked.

"The Eye of Orion, it's been quite some time since I last visited." The Doctor said. Clara smiled.

"You told me about that place before." Clara said, sitting down in one of the console room's chairs.

"The perfect place for a weary time traveller to relax." The Doctor said, leaning against the TARDIS console.

"Sounds perfect." Clara smiled, as a red light began flashing on the TARDIS console.

"What's that?" She asked, pointing at the control panel with the winking red light. The Doctor looked down, his brow furrowing.

"An alert," He muttered. "Temporal proximity detector."

Just as he spoke, the console room rocked and the TARDIS console sparked. The Doctor leapt back, nursing a burnt hand.

"Clara!" He shouted, motioning for her to stay seated. The lights in the console room turned red, as various alarms started blaring.

"What's happening?" Clara shouted.

"We're caught in a temporal distortion field. I can't get us out, hang on to something!" He shouted, as the TARDIS engines roared. Another small explosion ripped out of the TARDIS console, and Clara ducked as a lump of metal raced past her head.

The control room shook, and then the lights went out.

* * *

"Clara… Clara… Wake up!"

Clara's eyes opened. The Doctor was knelt above her, a bruise above his left eye.

"What happened?" She asked as she sat up, wincing as she felt a pain in her arm.

"We crashed. Are you alright?" The Doctor asked.

"I think my arm's broken."

The Doctor reached into his coat and pulled out the sonic screwdriver. He ran it along her arm, then flicked it open to read the display.

"There's a small fracture in the humerus bone. Hold it steady." The Doctor said, running down the stairs to the area beneath the TARDIS console. He opened one of the storage compartments and rummaged around, before recovering a sling. He came back up, opening the sling out and helping Clara to manoeuvre her arm inside.

"That should do for now." The Doctor said, securing the straps over Clara's shoulder. He stood, running his fingers over the TARDIS console, frowning as he surveyed the damage.

"Poor thing." He muttered, stroking the metal panels. Clara stood, wincing.

"Where are we then?" Clara asked.

"I have absolutely no idea." The Doctor said, stepping away from the TARDIS console and walking over to the doors.

"Let's find out."

A wave of heat hit the Doctor as he stepped out of the TARDIS, orange and brown dust crunching underneath his boots. He squinted as his eyes adjusted to the bright light, an expansive desert spread out before him. The TARDIS had landed at the top of a mound of land, a craggy hillock. Large mesas rose along the horizon, and a large mountain range spread off to his left. More interestingly, a pillar of smoke rose from a crashed spaceship, just at the bottom of the hillock.

Clara stepped out of the TARDIS, the door swinging shut behind her. s

"Wow." She said, gazing over the barren landscape.

"I don't recognise the geography, or the lunar arrangement." The Doctor said, pointing to the milky blue sky, where two large moons hung.

"It's amazing." Clara said, momentarily forgetting her arm. The Doctor had started to walk down the hillock, making for the crashed ship. Clara carefully ran after him, dust skittering down the slope as her shoes came into contact.

"Do you recognise the ship?" Clara asked. The Doctor shook his head.

"Not the make or model. It looks human in origin, but I'm not sure." He muttered. They approached the ship, heading for an airlock jutting out from the hull.

The Doctor pulled the sonic screwdriver from his jacket, holding it up to a panel set in the centre of the door. The panel sparked and the airlock hissed open. The Doctor and Clara went inside, grateful to be out of the heat.

A large corridor stretched out in both directions. The Doctor placed the sonic screwdriver back in his coat, and glanced back at Clara.

"I don't know how many of the crew might have survived. You might want to brace yourself for the worst." He said. Clara nodded, hoping there might be someone left alive.

They walked down the corridor, which was lined with warning signs and pipes. They came across what seemed to be the control room of the ship, and the Doctor seated himself at the terminal, accessing the ships records.

"Interesting." He said, reading the ships technical details.

"What is?" Clara asked.

"This ship has temporal rip drives. That must have been what generated the temporal distortion field, blinded the TARDIS sensors."

"Is that what made the ship crash?" Clara asked. The Doctor looked at her.

"I think that was us, Clara."

"What?" Clara exclaimed.

"I think we crashed into them. The TARDIS entered the distortion field, and the sensors went down. She would have been blind, wouldn't have seen what was up ahead. I suspect the TARDIS hit this ship, sent it down."

"Oh god." Clara said, leaning against one of the computer consoles.

"Clara, there was nothing we could have done." The Doctor said, standing from the chair.

"We have to find out if any of the crew survived, find out just exactly where and when we are, and see if we can get the TARDIS working again." He said, walking over to the door and pressing the button to open it.

He walked out of the control deck, and straight into the barrel of a gun.

 _ **A/N:**_ **Please leave a review. Check out my Tumblr at** **\- Come and say hi!**


	2. Chapter 2

The Doctor didn't lose a moment, his hand coming up and grabbing the wrist of the person holding the gun, forcing their arm up towards the ceiling. The gun fired, a bolt of bright green energy burning into the ceiling. The Doctor's other hand came up and jabbed the gunman's wrist, and their hand opened, the gun falling from their grasp and clattering off the floor.

"Bastards!" The woman yelled, trying to punch the Doctor. He stepped back, her fist passing in front of his face. She overbalanced, falling forward onto the floor. The Doctor stood over her, her gun held in his hands.

"Go on, then. Kill me." She said, her face defiant.

"Why would I want to do that?" The Doctor asked, pulling the power pack out of the blaster and tossing the useless blaster onto her stomach. She started, grabbing the defunct weapon but not moving from the spot.

"Get up. I hate conducting conversations with someone I'm not on the same level with."

The woman stood, and the Doctor read the name badge sewn onto her uniform.

"Captain Floyd?" The Doctor said, slipping the power pack to the woman's gun into his coat pocket.

"Yes. Who are you two, where did you come from?" She asked.

"We're travellers. We tend not to get involved with things like this." The Doctor said, motioning around the crashed ship.

"What about you?" Clara asked.

"Captain Sharon Floyd, Captain of the Mayfly. We were running a recon operation when we hit an asteroid. The ship crashed here, wherever here is." Floyd said, holstering her gun.

"That wasn't an asteroid, that was our ship. Your temporal rip engines disrupted our sensors, we couldn't help it," The Doctor said. "Are there any other survivors?"

Floyd shook her head.

"I've been looking for hours. There's no one left alive aboard this ship." She said sadly.

"No one made it to the lifeboats."

"Hey, chin up," The Doctor snapped. "You can mourn them later, but right now we need to figure out a way off this planet."

"The Doctor's right, you can mourn your crew later." Clara said. Floyd nodded.

"Where is your ship, is it still working?" She asked.

"She's had worse crashes. I doubt this one's incapacitated her." The Doctor said.

"Then let's go. I have to make contact with Earth as soon as possible." Floyd said, making for the door.

"Doctor, can we trust her?" Clara asked, as they strode down the corridor after the captain.

"I'm not sure," The Doctor said. "Something about this doesn't ring true."

"How so?" Clara looked up at the Doctor.

"Clara, this was the control room of the ship. The most important room on the craft. The most crowded room on the ship."

"Do you see any bodies?"

Perturbed, Clara shook her head.

"No, I haven't seen any since we came on board." She said. The Doctor nodded.

"Neither have I."

* * *

Floyd was standing outside the airlock, waiting for the Doctor and Clara. As they emerged from the shipwreck, she turned, squinting up to the top of the hill.

"Is that your ship?" She asked, holding her hand up to shield her eyes from the glare. The Doctor nodded.

"She doesn't look like much, but just wait until you're inside." Clara said.

"Hell, I don't think the three of us will fit inside!" Floyd said, as the Doctor swept past her, starting up the hill.

"Come on you two, no point standing around waiting. Let's go!" He shouted over his shoulder, not waiting for his companions.

"Is he always like that?" Floyd asked. Clara nodded.

"Yep. Just try to keep up, he goes everywhere fast." She said, giving chase after the Doctor. Floyd gave one last look at her ship, before running after the Doctor and Clara.

They had almost reached the TARDIS when the Doctor stopped, Clara and Floyd almost running into his back.

"Hold it!" The Doctor shouted, his arms spread out. He was standing absolutely still, and he motioned for the other two to stay silent.

"What's wrong?" Clara asked, the Doctor shushing her.

"Doctor?" she whispered, as several rocks broke loose and began rolling down the hill.

"What is that?" Floyd asked, a low rumbling starting up beneath the hill.

"I really don't want to find out." Clara muttered. Just as she spoke, a plume of dust shot up just in front of the TARDIS and something crawled out.

It resembled a beetle, although it was easily as large as a man. It's mandibles clicked menacingly, and it's antennae were focused straight at the Doctor, Clara and Floyd.

"Run!" The Doctor shouted, turning around and heading back towards the shipwreck. Clara and Floyd did the same, skidding and sliding down the hill. The Doctor and Floyd raced ahead, Clara getting left behind.

"Doctor!" Clara shouted as she lost her footing. The ground had opened up beneath her, and Clara fell, the dust and rock swallowing her up. More and more beetles poured out of the hill, black carapaces glinting in the strong sunlight.

"Clara!" The Doctor shouted, leaping towards the hole. He looked down, but Floyd grabbed his arm and pulled him away.

"We can't help her, we have to go!" She shouted, as the two ran over the dusty rocks.

"I can't leave her!" The Doctor shouted.

"You can't help her if you're dead, either." Floyd reasoned. They ran, dodging amongst plumes of dirt and dust, as more and more beetles joined the horde.

"There!" The Doctor shouted, pointing at a particular outcrop. He grabbed Floyd's and pulled her down, diving down into a crevice. They slid down a rock, and fell over the precipice, down into the ground.

They slammed onto solid rock a few metres down. The light from above was almost blocked entirely by the horde of beetles swarming overhead, but not one of the creature came down the hole after them.

"Quiet." The Doctor said, holding up his hand to Floyd. She crouched, waiting, but at last, the beetles above moved on, the rumbling of their stampede fading into the distance.

"Let's never do that again." Floyd said. The Doctor nodded, pulling a small black torch from his coat. He clicked the button on the handle, and a powerful white beam sprung from the tip.

"Let's see where we are." He said, sweeping the beam around the chamber, revealing a jagged wall of black rock. Several small pools of water had formed at the bottom of the wall, and despite their proximity to the surface of the planet, the Doctor's breath was fogging up in front of his face. He leant over, dipping his finger into the cold water, and brought it back, tasting the liquid.

"What do we do now?" Floyd asked.

"We find Clara. Then we get to the TARDIS, and get off this planet." The Doctor said, as he found a small tunnel.

"We're going down there?" Floyd asked. The Doctor nodded.

"Yes. Yes, we are." He said, as he began to walk.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ **Please leave a review. Come say 'Hi' on Tumblr -**


	3. Chapter 3

Clara sat up, rubbing the side of her head. Her eyes focused as her sight adjusted to the darkness. She seemed to be in a large rocky cavern, dimly lit by a hole in the roof. She stood, looking around in the darkness.

"Doctor!" She shouted up to the hole in the roof. There was no response.

A faint clicking emanated around the chamber, and Clara spun, searching for the source of the noise.

"Who's there?" She shouted, fishing her phone from the pocket of her jeans. She lit up the display, turning it so it shone into the darkness. It flashed over something smooth, shiny and black.

"Oh my god." Clara muttered, looking up the wall.

* * *

"So." The Doctor said, glancing over his shoulder.

"So, what?" Floyd asked, from behind him. They were walking through the tunnel, which had a steady downward slope. The Doctor's sonic screwdriver was held out ahead of him, the green light winking steadily as it emitted a low warbling noise.

"Tell me about yourself. I don't like not knowing about the people whose company I enjoy." He said. Floyd sniffed.

"I'd rather not." She said. The Doctor raised an eyebrow.

"Then you're either extremely shy, or hiding something." He said.

"Then tell me about your ship, the Mayfly. What was your mission?"

"That's classified." Floyd said. The Doctor chuckled.

"I bet it is."

"What do you mean by that?"

The Doctor stopped, and Floyd careened into his back.

"I don't like it when people lie to me, Floyd. You told me you were on a recon mission. What sector of space are we in?" The Doctor asked. Floyd gulped, staring the Doctor straight in the eye.

"You don't know. You weren't on a recon mission at all. The Mayfly was a wreck, but there were no crew on board, not even bodies. Just you. So what are you, a deserter? A convict?" He said, returning her stare. Floyd sighed.

"Pirate." She admitted.

"Pirate? Really? I love pirates, I once met Blackbeard. Terrific poker face." The Doctor said, turning and walking on.

"What was the deal with the Mayfly?"

"The crew were on shore leave. Just a skeleton crew left on board. I snuck aboard, sounded the emergency evacuation alarms and just took her." Floyd said, hesitant.

"Clever. Minimal bloodshed, crew are safe. A pirate with a sense of morality. Working alone?" The Doctor asked.

"Of course. No one to split the proceeds with." Floyd responded, shrugging.

"I see. Why the Mayfly?" The Doctor asked.

"It was there, easy to steal. Why steal another ship with heavier security?" Floyd replied. The Doctor nodded.

"I stole my ship too. A long time ago, a long way from here." He said, smiling wryly.

"You're a pirate?" Floyd asked, the Doctor shaking his head.

"Not exactly. I prefer traveller." He said. Floyd nodded.

"Just out to see the sights?"

"Something like that." The Doctor said, as the tunnel widened out into a larger cavern. The Doctor whistled.

"Now that's impressive." He said, swinging the beam of his torch up and around the room.

"Oh my god." Floyd muttered, looking up and around the huge chamber. The rock walls couldn't be seen for the sheer amount of beetles clinging to them, their black armour reflecting the Doctor's torchlight.

"It's a nest. Be very quiet." The Doctor said, putting a finger to his lips. Floyd nodded. The Doctor directed his torch beam to the floor of the cavern, calculating a route through the mass of giant insects. He carefully stepped forward, placing his boot into a small space between two of the nesting beetles. He motioned for Floyd to follow him, and he moved on, each step taken with precision.

They moved across the cavern slowly, avoiding the beetles as they went. Floyd almost lost her balance at one point, but the Doctor managed to grab her arm before she fell.

They finally reached the other side of the cave, and the Doctor breathed a sigh of relief.

"Let's not do that again." Floyd said. The Doctor brought his torch up, and they continued on down the tunnel.

They stepped into a larger chamber, which was lit dimly by a shaft of light from the ceiling.

"Clara!" The Doctor shouted, spotting his companion crouched on a large rock nearby. Clara's head whipped around, her eyes wide as she spotted the Doctor and Floyd. She waved her arms, motioning for them to stay put. Clara lifted her arm, and placed her finger at her lips, before pointing up towards the far wall.

"Oh my stars…" Floyd muttered, as the Doctor's torch lit up a massive carapace.

"Now, that's definitely impressive." The Doctor muttered, gazing over the giant beetle.

"What is that?" Floyd asked.

"Possibly the queen. Certainly the alpha female." The Doctor said, before he looked down at the ground. He hopped across the stones, reaching Clara.

"Are you alright?" He asked, as Clara nodded.

"Is that thing safe?" Clara asked. The Doctor looked up at the Queen.

"I have absolutely no idea." He admitted. The Queen stirred, a loud clicking erupting from the thing's body. The Doctor clicked his torch off, as the Queen let out a loud shrill clicking.

"Now we're in trouble." The Doctor muttered, as Floyd spun, a loud rumble coming up the tunnel behind her as the nest in the cavern woke up.

"Escape plan?" Clara asked. The Doctor froze.

"One way into this cavern, one way out." The Doctor muttered, craning his neck to look up the tunnel at the approaching horde. He reached into his coat and pulled out the power cell he had taken from Floyd's gun.

"Floyd!" He shouted, tossing the cell across the chamber. Floyd caught, and she lifted her gun from its holster. She slid it into her, the weapon whining as it powered up. She aimed up the tunnel, firing several shots at the approaching horde. The beetles swarmed back, wary of the bright green energy blasts, but it was only a matter of time before they came up the corridor.

"Doctor, we need a plan." Clara said, studying the wall carefully. The Queen roared, the ground shaking. A crack appeared one of the far walls, and Doctor pointed.

"Clara, over there!" He shouted, grabbing her hand and pulling her across the chamber. He reached into his jacket and pulled out the sonic screwdriver. He pointed it at the wall, and a shrill scream escaped from the device, the crack in the wall widening.

"Hurry up!" Clara shouted, as the Doctor kept the screwdriver aimed at the crack.

"In! In!" The Doctor said once the crack was large enough. He helped Clara through, before climbing across himself.

"Floyd! Quickly!" The Doctor shouted. Floyd looked over her shoulder, spotting the new entrance. She fired a few more shots at the approaching horde, before she turned and raced towards the Doctor and Clara. She jumped through the hole, and the Doctor held out his hand.

"Power pack!" He shouted.

"What?!" Floyd exclaimed. The Doctor took the gun from her and slid the power cell out. He pointed the sonic screwdriver at it and activated it, the blue lights on the cell turning red. He nestled it into the wall.

"Run!" He shouted, grabbing his two companions and running. The power cell whistled, and the Doctor, Clara and Floyd had just made it around a corner when the device exploded. The tunnel shook, and the entrance collapsed, squashing several carapaces in the process.

"Good idea." Floyd said, leaning against the wall to catch her breath. The ground shook, and a cloud of dust floated down from the ceiling.

"Maybe not so good." The Doctor muttered, looking up as the tunnel roof began to crack.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ **Please leave a review - hope you're enjoying the story!**


	4. Chapter 4

Light!

The Doctor, Clara and Floyd leapt through the tunnel mouth just before it collapsed, the tunnel groaning as tonnes of rock fell inwards.

"It must be our lucky day." The Doctor said, looking back at the collapsed entrance.

"Let's not test just how far our luck goes." Clara said, looking around.

"Where's the TARDIS?"

"That way." The Doctor said, pointing to his left.

"How'd you know?" Clara asked.

"I'm part homing pigeon." The Doctor said, striding out in the direction he had pointed. He had only taken a few steps when he stopped, the ground rumbling. A terrific roar echoed up from beneath as several fissures began opening up.

"Run!" The Doctor shouted. The three raced off, dodging between the holes and crevices as they widened.

"Watch out!" Floyd yelled as beetles began pouring out of the ground. They ran around a large outcrop, and the TARDIS appeared just over the crest of the hill.

"Go!" The Doctor yelled, starting up the hill, Clara and Floyd close on his heels. Their feet slipped in the sand, and Floyd stumbled, falling into the dust. A hole opened up behind her, and the Doctor spun, crouching beside her. The beetle held her leg in its mandibles, and was trying to drag her down into the hole. Floyd clawed at the ground, but couldn't get a hold.

"Clara! Go!" The Doctor shouted, snapping his fingers. At the top of the hill, the TARDIS door swung open. Clara nodded, racing off towards the top of the hill.

The Doctor pulled out the sonic screwdriver, fiddling with the settings. Floyd grabbed frantically at the sand.

"Hold on!" The Doctor called, pointing the screwdriver at the beetle. The bulb lit up, and the shrill warbling went out. The beetle released Floyd, and fell back into the hole. The Doctor helped Floyd up.

"Come on!" He shouted, running for the TARDIS. They reached the top of the hill, and the Doctor was about to step into the blue box when a loud groan came out of the ground. The land shook, and a massive canyon split open at the bottom of the hill. The Queen clambered out, her mandibles and carapace glinting in the bright sunlight.

"Into the TARDIS. Now!" The Doctor shouted, pushing Floyd through the doors. He leapt in, closing the doors behind him.

"We're safe, right?" Clara asked, as Floyd gaped at the control room.

"Not yet." The Doctor said, racing to the console. He threw levers manically, slamming buttons and switches.

"The shields are down. If that Queen gets her mandibles on the TARDIS…" He said, the lights in the control room flickering.

"It's bigger on the inside?" Floyd said, still in shock.

"Yes, now shut up!" The Doctor shouted, thumping the console.

"Doctor?" Clara cried, as the control room tilted, the TARDIS beginning to slide down the hill.

"Not now!" The Doctor yelled, pulling one of the console panels off. He set about rewiring the innards of the console, light pulsating frantically up the centre column.

"Come on!" The Doctor shouted, as he pushed the control panel back into place.

"Yes!" he shouted, slamming a button on the console. The engines sprang into life, and the time rotor began to oscillate. The comforting familiarity of the noise from the TARDIS engines surrounded the trio, as the time machine flew away from the planet, and into the time vortex.

* * *

 _London, 2599_

The TARDIS materialised in a small flat, the blue box nestled nicely in the corner beside a bookcase. The Doctor stepped out, grinning.

"Home sweet home!" He shouted, as Clara and Floyd followed him out of the box. Floyd gawped in awe, both at the TARDIS and the fact that she was home.

"Not too bad, if I say so myself." The Doctor said, patting the TARDIS.

"That was… that…" Floyd started.

"I know." Clara grinned.

"Good work Floyd, you did well." The Doctor said, folding his arms.

"Well done? For what?" Floyd asked, unsure of what she was being congratulated on.

"For surviving. For not panicking. For helping me to save Clara." The Doctor said.

"Thanks." Clara said, smiling at Floyd. Floyd smiled back.

"So what now?" She asked. The Doctor and Clara looked at each other.

"Onwards. More travelling, more adventures. There's still so much to see." The Doctor said.

"You could come with us."

Floyd started, totally unprepared for the Doctor's offer.

"I…" She started, flustered. She gathered herself, before responding.

"No. Thanks, but no. I have to get my life in order, no more pirating. Time to do something worthwhile." She said. The Doctor smiled, just a hint of sadness buried beneath his façade.

"I understand. Good luck." He said, pushing the TARDIS door open and stepping into the box. Clara smiled at Floyd.

"Good luck." She said.

"Thanks Clara. If you're ever in town, look me up." Floyd said, smiling back.

"I will." Clara laughed, before following the Doctor into the TARDIS. The door swung shut, and Floyd stood back, watching as the magnificent machine dematerialised, fading into the time vortex. She turned, and walked over to the window, gazing out over the London skyline. She had her whole life ahead of her. Time to do something with it.

* * *

 ** _A/N:_ The end! Please leave a review, I hope you enjoyed the story. I'm on Tumblr here - ****tardisblueboxdw DOT tumblr DOT com** **\- come say hi!**


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